Summer time + heat + life= hard to update regularly. Please forgive me.Anyways, last week I was invited to a gala to celebrate something that has influenced me to be the young woman I am today. The gala was for the celebration of the 20th Anniversary of the Beginning with Children Foundation and the founders, Joe and Carol Reich.
Joe and Carol Reich were two successful individuals who decided one day to make an investment in education. To do this they created a partnership with New York City Board of Education, the United Federation of Teachers, and Pfizer Inc, as well as received help from sponsors throughout the years. As the school continue to gr0w (might I add I was the third class to graduate and was the first biggest class to graduate, which was around 48 students), it was converted to a charter school requested by the Chancellor of the City of New York. This made Beginning with Children one of the first K-8 public charter schools in New York State.
Beginning with Children Charter School or B.W.C as many of the alumni and students would call it, played...well still plays an important role in my life. Yes, they used to spoiled us as children to parties at Pfizer, to having our own little private park in the middle of Bed-Stuy/Williamsburg area, to family picnics, to trips to Cornell University to Washington D.C., and I can go on but I'll leave it at etc. Although, I have become an alumni to B.W.C I am not forgotten and so are many other alumni because to this day they still spoil us with opportunities. Great opportunities like college preparation and tours, workshops, paid internships/jobs, and again I can go on.
I had a lovely time at the gala. I met some great important people and I seen some old teachers, along with seeing some great old friends. One of B.W.C. first graduates, Omar Lopez hosted the event. He's a Harvard graduate who is already on his road to success, but he has also shown a obvious love to giving back to his community and where he came from. Omar is currently teaching at a charter high school, but did announce he will be teaching next year at B.W.C new sister school Community Partnership Charter School.
Wow!!! Beginning with Children has come a long way, but I can't forget one of my mentors and the woman who helped kept the foundation of B.W.C together, Sonia Oritz-Gulardo. She has done so much for me and many of the students of B.W.C. She was my first principal who told me when I was wrong, but she was also one of the first individuals to see something in me. I remember I had a conflict that needed to be discussed in the principal's office, which was her office. I spoke and expressed myself so well about the situation, and I knew this because Ms. G (as we call her) expressed this to me. It was good hearing this from someone who knew me as a shy little girl who have watched me grow into a more outspoken young girl. Haha, now those who know me today know I am very outspoken!Overall, this event brought back so many memories that I had to try my best to hold back so many tears, especially when Ms. G shed a few tears as she shared a wonderful speech about B.W.C with us.
